West Colton
This page is under construction. History The West Colton Yard was built by the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) in 1972. SP's concept was to replace it's aging Taylor Yard in Glendale / Los Angeles, CA, which was no longer in a prime location for traffic between the Sunset and San Joaquin Valley routes. With the Colton-Palmdale Cutoff opening a few years prior, West Colton was a perfect spot to handle traffic from the north (San Joaquin Valley), the east (Sunset Route), and west (to Los Angeles). Running south and parallel to Interstate 10, the six-mile long West Colton Yard is one of the largest classification yards on the west coast. There are eight receiving tracks (approx. 1800 car capacity), plus a ninth running track, on the west end of the yard. From there, trains are moved though a fully automated hump, which has a six percent slope, and cars are sorted in a 65-track (originally 48) classification yard. Outbounds are then formed in one of 14 depature tracks on the east end of the yard. West Colton comes complete with a Locomotive Repair Facility, One Spot Car Repair facility, and Administrative Offices. West Colton in Run8 Run8 offers a fully operational hump-classification yard at West Colton through its Cajon Sub route addon. The yard features eight receiving tracks, 19 classification tracks, and 14 departure tracks. There are car service tracks, as well as locomotive storage and service tracks. Though the one spot repair building is missing, the locomotive service facility and fuel ramps are present. Other yard buildings, such as the hump and trim towers, as well as the administrative offices are included in the addon. Receiving Yard In Run8, West Colton's Receiving Yard has eight tracks for inbound trains. The tracks are numbered 102 through 109, with track 102 being closest to the main, then increase sequentially from there. The receiving tracks vary in length (from 8,975' to 10,600'), and are long enough to fit any train offered in RTS. With that, there is no preference as to which track a train is yarded in. Upon arrival at West Colton, update the Registry to show the train as ARRIVING at UP WEST COLTON, and indicate the receiving track number. If the operator choses to do so, the power can be removed from the train, and taken over to the locomotive storage tracks (501-508). Otherwise, this can be handled by the yard crews. Hump / Classification Yard In Run8, West Colton's Classification Yard has 19 tracks for hump operations. The tracks are numbered 201 through 219, with track 201 being closest to the main, then increase sequentially from there. Trains in the receiving yard are cleared to be humped, unless otherwise noted in the forums. Note: In the real world, trains are typically inspected in the arrival yard prior to being humped. Therefore it is not prototypical to yard the train, then immediately hump it. When working the WC Hump job, use the SD40 power stored at the hump tower. Make an entry under the UP West Colton Yard forum to indicate that the hump job is on duty. Proceed to the west end of the receiving yard, back into the appropriate receiving track, and couple to the train to be humped. Prior to starting the hump operations, be sure to close the angle cock to the locomotives, and bleed the air from the cars (CTRL+F7). When at the hump, be sure the hump is active by checking the hump controller screen (CTRL+F6). THE MAXIMUM SPEED WHILE HUMPING IS 2.0 MPH! Control the train speed by using the slow-speed control feature (CTRL+C) once at the desired humping speed. NOTE: The grade for West Colton's hump is different from the hump at Barstow, therefore different throttle/independent settings will need to be used. As a train approaches the hump crest, designated by a blank white sign board, railcars are scanned and automatically routed to the appropriate classification track based on their destination. On the RTS server, classification tracks are designated as follows: While humping, be sure to monitor operation and ensure that the cars are routing to the appropriate track. Common causes of misroutes are speeding and network lag. If performing other tasks on the computer while humping (i.e. surfing the internet), that can create network lag between the client computer and the host computer. If cars are going into the wrong track, stop the hump operations (CTRL+F6). If possible, stop free-rolling cars by setting the handbrake (click the coupler from a close distance to bring up the menu). With the hump controller off, back down into the bowl and retreive the misrouted cars. Once the cars are retreived, pull west of the bowl, and clear the platform by the hump tower. Once clear, reactivate the hump (CTRL+F6) and continue operations. Another option for correcting misroutes is via the Trim Job once the humping operation is complete. When finished, a follow up entry can be made under the UP West Colton Yard forum to indicate that the hump job is off duty. The Registry should also be updated, identifying the train status as being WORK, location as HUMPED, and the receiving track number that the train came from. The yard power can be tied down at the hump crest in front of the hump tower. Departure Yard In Run8, West Colton's Departure Yard has 14 tracks for outbound trains. The tracks have various numbers (501-502, 411-415, 435-439 and 904-905), with 501 being closest to the main, and 905 being the furthest south. In Run8, the depature yard is rather small, and is isolated to the east end of the yard, compared to the yard in the real world. In the real world, there are some departure tracks that extend between the hump yard and the locomotive storage / car department area. The longest departure track in Run8 is 4,990, and longer trains may need to be doubled over prior to deprature. All trains built in the departure yard are built to depart to the east, including westbounds. Westbound trains utilize the baloon track at Pepper (SP535) to turn and head west. As needed, the trim power (a pair of SD40's next to the trim tower at the east end of the hump yard) can be used to pull cars out of the bowl and move them over to the depature yard. West Colton currently doesn't have a yard matrix (like the Barstow Matrix) to identify departure tracks, therefore it is left to user discretion as to where cars are stored, and trains are built. When possible, utilize the smaller length tracks for storing cars (bowl overflow), saving the longer tracks for building trains. This will avoid the need to double over departures as much as possible. Make an entry under the UP West Colton Yard forum to indicate any trim movements. Build orders are issued by RTS Admins for outbound trains. When a build order is issued, use the trim power to pull any remaining cars (if any) out of the bowl for the ordered train. Take the cars over to the departure yard and add them to any additional cars. NOTE: No further trains should be humped in effort to add more cars to the outbound train. '' The cars can also be moved to a longer track if needed. If the receiving yard is empty (no pending hump activity), longer trains in 411 and/or 412 can extend past the departure yard into the hump yard (202/203) to avoid having to double over the depature. 501/502 can also extend through the switches into 201 if needed. Once all cars for the outbound have been placed in the departure yard, the train can be powered and released. 'Only use the minimum number of locomotives needed to achieve the HPT required for the route(s) to be travelled! 'Do not overpower outbound trains. Trains exceeding coupler limits will need DPU power on the rear. Once the train is powered, the train can be released in the Registry. Show the train status as RELEASED, at UP WEST COLTON, and indicate the departure track number. Locomotive Shops & Storage West Colton features a full locomotive service facilty, including maintenance shops, fuel / service pits, and storage. Power from inbound trains can be taken to the storage tracks (501-508) located between the shops and the trim tower. Yard crews may take the power to the shops if needed. Power for outbound trains can be taken from the storage tracks or the service pits. There is a wye to the south of the shops if a unit needs to be turned. A set of three BNSF ES44's can be stored in the storage tracks for the MWCLBAR. If additional BNSF units come off of inbound trains, they may be moved to BNSF San Bernardino. There is also a set of five SD40's that run the MWCBK/MBKWC. Outbound Minimum HPT Requirements & Coupler Limits When building outbound trains from West Colton, the following guidelines shall be met for northbound and eastbound trains: ---- '''HPT REQUIREMENTS' The following routes have minimum HPT requirements. *'Cajon Pass (UP) =' 2.5 (non-DP or helper equipped) --- 2.3hpt (DP or helper equipped). *'Cajon Pass (BNSF), MAIN 1 =' 2.5 (non-DP or helper equipped) --- 2.3hpt (DP or helper equipped). *'Cajon Pass (BNSF), MAIN 2 =' 3.0 (non-DP or helper equipped) --- 2.8hpt (DP or helper equipped). *'Yuma Sub =' 2.0hpt Trains shall be built to have enough power to meet the minimum HPT requrements to prevent stalling. ---- COUPLER LIMITS Standard strength couplers (S) have a lower trailing tonnage limit than the high strength coupler (H). High strength couplers are found on solid coal, grain and intermodal trains. All others are considered to have standard strength couplers. Some routes have multiple grades with different coupler limits. The most restrictive limits are as follows: *'Cajon Pass (UP) =' 6200 tons (S) --- 7875 tons (H) *'Cajon Pass (BNSF), MAIN 1 =' 6500 tons (S) --- 8500 tons (H) *'Cajon Pass (BNSF), MAIN 2 =' 4600 tons (S) --- 6300 tons (H) *'Yuma Sub =' 6400 tons (S) --- 8300 (H) Trains exceeding the above tonnage shall be DPU/Helper equipped. ---- LOCOMOTIVE PLACEMENT When adding locomotives to a train, observe the following guidelines: *Trains requiring more than 3 ES44's shall have be DPU (3x1, 3x2, 3x3, 2x2, etc.) *Trains requiring more than 5 SD40's shall have helpers *Trains requiring more than 6 ES44's shall have mid train helpers (3x2x3, 3x1x3, 3x2x2, etc.) *When adding DPU's, the number of locomotives on the rear shall be equal or less than the number on the head *Trains hauling additional locomotives for the purpose of a power move shall run the extra units isolated Special Train Instructions The following trains have special instructions (operating and/or building): *'CSVWC / CWCSV -' The CSVWC is spawned at Daggett, and is yarded in the WC receiving yard, and is left intact, and the power remains attached. DO NOT HUMP! This train will become the CWCSV later in the cycle. During the cycle, yard crews turn the train at the baloon if necessary, tag and empty the cars. The train will then be released at the appropriate call time. *'MWCBK -' The MWCBK has work at Mojave. When building, place all Mojave bound cars at the head end. Tags include MJ, MJ(OC), MJ(LP), MOJ, 770, Lone Pine and Oak Creek. There is a set of five UP SD40's that are normally used for this train. If needed for coupler limits / HPT requirements, ES44(s) can also be added. *'MWCLBAR -' This is a BNSF train that operates between West Colton and Mojave. There is a set of three BNSF ES44's that are normally used for this train. Return to California Operations